11–14 of 14 posts
These "down the hole" investigations can sometimes be used as the basis for open-ended interview questions. I always ask candidates to tell me everything that happens between the time that they see an interesting link on the screen, click on it, and see the result. I've had great answers in the space of 2 minutes, and amazing ones that covered 15 or more. Some of the more spectacular answers referenced neurons, muscl…
It is worth noting this whole series is incredible. I used to work with the guy who started it (@jordansissel), and he was an incredible sysadmin/software engineer. If you go through the archives on the right side, you will find lots more incredible posts (although he doesn't write them all anymore, they are all of excellent quality).
Nice article; it reminds me of taking OS at CMU. There's something incredible about learning what happens all the way down when you call, say, printf. Suddenly the computer transforms from an incomprehensible black box into an fascinating marvel of engineering - but unlike a magician's act, the magic only gets better when you see how it works.